ODJ: All We Need

May 3, 2016 

READ: Jeremiah 2:1-7  

I brought you into a fruitful land to enjoy its bounty and goodness (v.7).

Dan Price announced in April 2015 that he would slash his CEO salary by roughly 90 percent so he could raise the salaries of his workforce (approximately 120 employees). By doing so, Price proposed that by 2017 everyone working for him would make at least £45,000 (€60,000) per year. To make this happen, his salary dropped from £650,000 (€870,000) to £45,000 per year—matching his employee’s minimum compensation. Price did this because he wanted his employees to have all they need. News of this generosity spread quickly because it is remarkable and unusual in corporate culture.

The Scriptures repeatedly affirm how God desires for us to have all we need. He exudes persistent generosity and doesn’t deal with us like a stingy miser. Rather, God’s grace provides for a “satisfying life” (John 10:10). The prophet Jeremiah reminds Israel that He “brought [them] into a fruitful land to enjoy its bounty and goodness” (2:7).

In Genesis, God welcomed Adam and Eve into a garden of bounty, a space overflowing with fruit and love and beauty (1:31). Revelation paints a picture of a new world where goodness and plenty abound (22:1-2). Between these two stories, we find a God who showers us with provision, abundant mercy and every manner of kindness.

Though we may not receive everything we want, God pours His gifts out on us—providing what we need. Sadly, however, Jeremiah laments how Israel rejected God’s generosity and “defiled [His] land and corrupted the possession [He] promised” (2:7).

Though we may sometimes fret about our future and whether our family will have what it needs, God promises to be with us. The question is whether or not we’ll receive Him and His provision.

— Winn Collier

365-day plan: Esther 2:1-23

MORE
Read Ephesians 1:7-9. What does Paul tell us about God’s generosity? Read this text in several different translations. What various words do you notice? 
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What do you feel is lacking in your life? How might you trust God for the bounty He alone can provide?